RepRap

I broke my printer.   I fixed my printer.  

The way I was able to do this so easily tonight when I realized the fan shroud to the new printer was cracked was because of a group of people who got together a number of years ago when 3D printing was more in its infancy and decided the best way to make 3D printers would be for them to make themselves.   Self-replicating machines, although not in the Terminator kind of way. 

My new printer was made by other printers.  Not all of the parts as the screws, wires, metal, and some other pieces were made elsewhere. but where plastic parts are found on the machine, they were made by other printers just like mine.  

The Reprap project is not only about making self-replicating machines but making them generally available.   That means the hardware on my printer is all open source and all the pieces are free to download and print for yourself.   I could have ordered a replacement part for $3.50 and had it shipped from overseas.   Or, I could send it to my printer and forty minutes later I would not only have the piece printed but also installed.   I chose the latter option. 

The printer is still in that shiny, "it's new and perfect" phase so when I realized I had a broken part I had that terrible feeling you get when you hurt something you care about.   I worried it would be long and complicated to repair.   I already had the print files for the whole printer though so I threw the part on the printer and then went looking for installation information. 

I ran into another expectation from the company though, which caused me to get derailed for a bit.   The company clearly states: "we expect people to make modifications to the printer."   Not only do they expect it, it's part of the culture around the company.  And that meant I found other parts, similar to the one I was printing from the company, for free, that other people had designed that they said had other benefits such as, "this version better redirects airflow onto the print surface."   

I could fix the printer, but heck, I could also upgrade it if I wanted instead.   Tonight I opted for just replacing the part with a stock alternative.   But tomorrow maybe I'll go see what other upgrades people have created for their printers that I can download and print on mine...to upgrade the machine on which it was printed. 

Crazy, no?

The Tiny Girl Big Boy No Idea Update:  We had a friend come over tonight for dinner and a meeting.   My children said hello and we talked during dinner and then my husband and I went to the basement.   I have no idea what my children did for the rest of the night, but they got themselves in bed and took care of everything themselves.   They are growing up.  Although odds are they "forgot" to brush their teeth.    They haven't bought into the whole, "trust me, you'll want your teeth when you get older" lecture yet.